Lesser spot-nosed monkey

The lesser spot-nosed monkey, lesser spot-nosed guenon, lesser white-nosed guenon, or lesser white-nosed monkey (Cercopithecus petaurista) is a species of primate in the family Cercopithecidae. It is found in Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Togo, Guinea-Bissau, and possibly Senegal.

Lesser spot-nosed monkey[1]
At the San Diego Zoo

Near Threatened  (IUCN 3.1)[2]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Primates
Suborder: Haplorhini
Infraorder: Simiiformes
Family: Cercopithecidae
Genus: Cercopithecus
Species:
C. petaurista
Binomial name
Cercopithecus petaurista
(Schreber, 1774)
Geographic range

Description

This is a small arboreal species with a long tail. The face is black with a white nose spot. A white stripe extends from the temple to below the ear. The crown, back, outer side of the limbs and upper surface of the tail are olive-green or khaki. In some forms, the middle and lower back have a reddish tinge. The individual hairs, especially on the crown, are flecked with black and yellow. The underparts, inner side of the limbs and underside of the tail are white or cream.[3]

Distribution and habitat

The species is found in West Africa. Its range includes Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana and Togo, and it has also been recorded in southeastern Senegal. It is adaptable and is found in a range of habitats including primary and secondary forest, gallery forest, regenerating felled areas, coastal scrubland, bushy areas among farmland,[2] and cultivated fields.[3]

Ecology

The lesser spot-nosed monkey is diurnal, arboreal and cryptic; it moves through the forest cautiously, seldom climbing to the high canopy but mostly frequenting the understorey layers and lianas. It forms social groups of about ten animals, usually one adult male, several adult females and their young. It feeds on leaves, fruit, flowers and insects, gathering its food and storing it in cheek pouches; when these are full, they are prominent, its white throat resembling a snowball.[3] The reproduction of this species has been little studied. Females give birth to a single young after a gestation period of about seven months. Breeding does not appear to be seasonal.[3]

Status

C. petaurista is a common and adaptable species. Some areas of forest in which it lives are being degraded but it is tolerant of the disturbance. It may be hunted for bushmeat in some areas, but the International Union for Conservation of Nature has not identified any major threats and has assessed its conservation status as being near-threatened.[2]

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References
  1. Groves, C. P. (2005). "Order Primates". In Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 157. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.
  2. Matsuda Goodwin, R., Segniagbeto, G., Wiafe, E., Osei, D., Koné, I., Gonedelé Bi, S. & Oates, J.F. (2020). "Cercopithecus petaurista". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2020: e.T4225A17945536. Retrieved 10 July 2020.CS1 maint: uses authors parameter (link)
  3. Jonathan Kingdon; David Happold; Thomas Butynski; Michael Hoffmann; Meredith Happold; Jan Kalina (2013). Mammals of Africa. A&C Black. pp. 381–383. ISBN 978-1-4081-8996-2.
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